Within The Shadows
by ShadowRen
Summary: Ren Suzugamori and Blaster Dark. Two people finding their purpose and lost memories, doing whatever it takes to do so, only to find themselves in yet another mystery... Rated T just in case for mild violence. Rensaka and Dark x Luquier. First fanfic, so any and all reviews are appreciated!
1. Chapter 1: The Calm Shadow

**Konnichiwa minna-san! Before I begin, I should give credits to royalfortressmeadow because her Fanfiction Between Two Worlds was the main inspiration for my very first fanfic, which is this one, by the way, and as such, I strongly recommend you read her fanfic as well. Like any Fanfiction writer, I have a writing style of my own. Which is...**

'thoughts'

"conversation or words said out loud"

(AN:author note. Don't worry, there aren't any more than 2-3 so far as I'm writing in free time...)

 **By the way, please take note that I have moved the Legion Mate arc 3 years ahead, to the CFV:G era.**

 **Without further ado, enjoy!**

* * *

A redhead tossed around in his bed, before tossing off the covers in exasperation. Ren sat up, running his hand through his long red hair. Yes, he, Ren Suzugamori, the leader of the team that won the Nationals twice, the Seoul Stage of the Asia Circuit AND the High School Championship, could not sleep.

Sighing, he went over to a piano that he had installed and began playing a few songs. He knew he was alone until he started playing 'Monochrome no Kiss' (AN: Kuroshitsuji OP 1) when he heard the elevator to his room open.

Asaka had woken up to the sound of melodious playing coming from the floor above her. Curious, she went a floor up, to Ren's room.

Ren, noticing Asaka standing next to him, decided to skip the innocent persona antics and kept playing the piece. The piece was rather calming, but had a dark edge to it. He mainly played played it because he liked the song, and always played it when he got stressed.

Asaka listened quietly as Ren played the piece. The melody calmed her. When Ren finished the piece, Asaka spoke up. "Ren-sama, that was a nice piece!"

"Thanks, Asaka." Ren replied. He turned to look at her. "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to play this. What are you doing up here anyway?"

Caught, Asaka's face flushed red. "I-I couldn't sleep too, a-and I just heard your piece from my room, s-so I got curious..." She looked away. "I-I liked the piece..."

Expecting Ren to get angry or upset, Asaka was surprised when Ren smiled at her instead. "Then, do you want me to play it again?" He asked.

"Y-yes, Ren-sama." Asaka replied.

Ren smiled, the started playing the piece again. Asaka started swaying to the tune. Seeing this, Ren began humming out the tune of the song as he played. When he finished, he turned to Asaka.

"It's getting late, you should go back to bed." Ren said.

"Y-yes, Ren-sama." Asaka answered. She turned, heading for the elevator.

"Oh, Asaka?" Ren called out. Asaka stopped, then looked back. "You can just call me Ren if you like. Just omit the -sama."

"Y-yes, Ren."

* * *

(Cray, 20 years before start of story) (AN: the Cray side wIll always be 20 years before the start until I say otherwise)

Luquier ended her performance with a bow, at the same time cracking her whip to make the dragons bow, too. As usual, her performance brought the house, or rather circus tent down. She walked towards her room. As usual, her skeleton dog followed suit. As usual, she opened the door to her room.

What was unusual was the fact that a young man was leaning against the wall. He wore a sleeveless black suit that clung to his body, black pants and boots, and black cloth gauntlets on his wrists. The man had black hair, and, Luquier noted, was holding flowers and a tray of chocolates. A black sword was placed against the wall next to him. "You look in a much better stare then when you were only just un-Reversed, Luquier." He said in a deep voice that might've made many girls swoon.

Luquier immediately recognized the voice. "Blaster Dark!"

The man smirked. "Right on track. I brought flowers and chocolate. Caramel-coated chocolate, like I promised, Luquier."

"You remembered!" Luquier exclaimed. "I thought you'd forgotten after you missed the show at Star Gate..."

"I had a mission that time, and for that I apologize." Dark explained. He looked down to see Luquier's skeleton dog staring intently at him. Dark knelt down and patted the dog. "Hey there, Fullbau."

Luquier sat down on her bed. Dark sat down beside her.

"Dark..." Luquier said. "What?" Dark asked in reply.

"Seeing you like this without your armour... You remind me of a friend of mine..." Luquier said.

"Oh? Do tell me more."

"His name was Kuro. He used to be a knife-thrower. He was also rather adept at acrobatics and was rather daring. Although, when not acting, he was often a bit shy..." Luquier began.

"Sounds like a brave man, even with his shyness." Dark complimented, quite impressed by Luquier's description.

"He acted like he had a crush on me. Even so, he was too shy to admit it. I simply thought him far too shy for a circus performer, until that one day when he saved me when I failed to tame one of the dragons properly. He was amazing! All he did was hold out his hand, then the dragon just began rubbing on his hand!" Luquier described Kuro further.

"So? Where is he now? As far as I know, you're the only dragon-tamer in Pale Moon." Dark asked.

"He's dead."

"Oh..." Dark trailed off, shocked. "What happened to him?"

"He was supposed to promote our show in United Sanctuary. Usually we would've sent others, but since the Royal Paladins led by King Ezzell were at war with the dragons of Dragon Empire, I sent him because of his astounding skill with taming dragons which could've helped if he ever encountered one. But, he never returned." Luquier explained, her tone sad. "It was only then that I realized that I loved him, his bravery and even his occasional antics."

"I see."


	2. Chapter 2: Pain

**Konnichiwa minna-san! Before I start, please please please, don't kill me. I know I've been gone for the past month or so, but I had a cosplay event where I did a Cosplay on the younger Ren, and then schoolwork and projects stacked one on the other.**

 **Now, without further ado, enjoy!**

* * *

Olivier Gailliard studied the building in front of him. The Asteroid building. The rest of the Quatre Knights followed closely behind, dragging along Kai's defeated team, Ratie munching on a doughnut.

"Ren Suzugamori..." Gailliard growled. "You have broken your promise. You will receive your judgement today!"

They entered the building. Inside, Ren appeared to have been waiting for someone. "I see you have returned... Kai..."

Asaka and Tetsu were standing nearby. Kai struggled slightly to look up, given his condition (Read: burned by the Bluish Flames). However, he could see Ren's serious face. That redhead wasn't going to joke around.

"Ren Suzugamori." Gailliard greeted, albeit rather rough-sounding.

"Olivier Gailliard." Ren said, returning the greeting. "What made you come here? I don't think you have anything to do with me other than that promise we made a while back."

"About that." Gailliard said. "You have broken your promise, Ren Suzugamori. You have leaked information about is to Toshiki Kai. Therefore, you will be judged." He clashed his rings together, which caused a blue flames to surround them. "Holy Prominence Prison!"

The prison surrounded all who stood at the corridor. Neve, Cerra and Ratie summoned their own prisons. Ren soon found himself surrounded by the Knights' prisons.

"It's time it has been passed." Gailliard declared, before the Knights shouted in unison. "Judgement!"

Thorny vines wrapped around Ren's legs before he could move an inch. Ren cursed under his breath, now rendered unable to move. Ice then froze his arms in place, while steel bars fell to the ground around him. Ren's eyes widened as he spotted the blue inferno headed his way.

"Quatre Knights Combined Judgement!"

The inferno hit its target, as electricity surged through the steel bars. Ren screamed in agony. Kai could only watch in shock as the redhead continued to scream. Ren had never shouted like that, not when he was under PSY Qualia's influence, not when he lost to Kai, nothing. Nothing had ever made him scream like he was now.

Thorns enveloped Ren's wrist, tearing through flesh to reveal bone. Another vine slashed the right side of his face. When the Quatre Knights released the prison, Ren collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Blood dripped from his wounds to the cold marble floor of the Asteroid building.

"Ren!" Asaka shouted, running to Ren's side.

"No!" Kai shouted at the sight of Ren's mangled body. He turned to face Gailliard. "You! What did you do to him?!"

"All the Judgements combined. You know what one Judgement does, Toshiki Kai. Now imagine that pain times four." Gailliard said, his eyes not leaving Ren's body that Tetsu lifted carefully while Asaka frantically called for an ambulance.

* * *

(United Sanctuary, Cray, 20 years before beginning of story)

Blaster Dark tossed around in his bed, dreaming as he slept.

(Dream)

"Come on, slowpoke!" Yelled a black-haired girl with a whip. A raven-haired boy clad in a black, sleeveless shirt and black pants hurried along behind her.

"Hold on, Luquier-san!" The boy shouted, or rather, squeaked back.

"Sheesh, Kuro, stop being such a slowpoke!" Luquier, or rather the girl Dark thought was Luquier, grumbled.

Another thought registered in the dark knight's mind. 'Wait, Kuro? Isn't that the knife-thrower Luquier mentioned?'

Just then, his dream world spun, and he woke up.

'What on Cray was that? Did Raqiel set another nightmare on me again? No wait, that doesn't count as a nightmare, so what was that about?' Dark thought, sorting out his memories. He then had the crazy idea that the dream might just be one of his memories from his childhood. 'Ugh... No luck. I really can't remember anything that happened before I turned 12...' Frustrated, he went back to sleep.

(Dream)

Kuro ran past a barren battlefield, avoiding the corpses of Knights and dragons that died in battle. Without realizing, he got close to a particular dragon called Dragonic Lawkeeper. Far too close.

The dragon roared when it saw the young Kuro. Thinking that the circus boy was a knight, Dragonic Lawkeeper lashed out at Kuro with an uppercut to the shoulder, which sent said boy crashing into a nearby tree, knocking him unconscious.

And yet again, Dark's dream world spun.

This time, Blaster Dark woke up with a jolt. He growled as he ran his hand through his black hair. He took off his shirt and examined his shoulder.

There, running up his shoulder, was a long scar.


	3. Chapter 3: Recovery and Discovery

**Shadow:** Hello! My school holidays are coming pretty soon, and I'll be typing a bit more suring that time, but no promises, because it's also my birthday in two days! Anyway, Blaster Dark is joining me today, since Ren is unconscious...

 **Blaster Dark:** We should be making this quick, my Vanguard may need me...*takes out small paper labelled Disclaimer* Shadow does not own Cardfight Vanguard or any of it's characters.

 **Shadow:** If I did, Ren would now be in Cardfight Vanguard G playing Shadow Paladin instead of Kanzaki and Yuya. I really don't like those two. Anyway, please enjoy!

* * *

Ren opened his eyes, finding himself in a hospital ward. He attempted to sit up, only to wince as pain surged through his right arm. He tried to recall what had happened to him. "Oh right, I fell unconscious after they finished their Judgement..."

He decided to take stock of his condition by feel and touch, since his eyes couldn't scam his body in his position.

His entire abdomen had been bandaged, along with the bridge of his nose while his right arm was in a cast. 'Tch, I got really roughed up.' He thought.

Just as he was about to go to sleep again, he heard the door to his ward open and Asaka's voice.

"Ren! You're awake!" Asaka exclaimed, rushing to his side. "We were so worried about you..."

"Like I would die just yet..." Ren attempted to assure Asaka, his voice weak and barely audible. "How long was I out for?"

Tetsu appeared on the other side of his bed. "A week. Your injuries were really serious. Worse than losing in a fistfight." He said, adding his own joke, referring to the time when Ren found him on the rooftop of a building when they were younger.

The doctor entered, showing three fingers. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Three." Came Ren's short reply.

The doctor wrote something in his chart. "Well, I'd say this is a miracle, Ren Suzugamori. You just survived various wounds, electrocution, third-degree burns, and, I don't mmos how this happened, considering there were burns on your body, extremely low temperatures."

Ren just stared blankly at the doctor.

"You should just get some sleep, Ren." Tetsu advised.

Ren nodded once, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.

* * *

(United Sanctuary, Cray.)

Luquier walked around the United Sanctuary after getting permission from Alfred to promote the Pale Moon's upcoming show in the United sanctuary. It was easy, the young king being very fond of the circus, along with his best friend, Blaster Blade. The only reason they rarely went to the performances was because they were always busy handling the United Sanctuary.

As she pasted posters around the Shadow Paladin area, a strong hand grabbed her arm and pulled her into a room. Luquier's blue and red eyes met emerald green ones.

"Blaster Dark!" She exclaimed, recognizing the the owner of those eyes.

"Luquier, I want to ask you something." Dark said. "What did Kuro look like?

"Kuro?" Luquier asked for confirmation. Seeing Dark nod, she answered his question. "Kuro... If he had lived, he would look just like you."

Dark's eyes widened. He let Luquier's hand go, before he sat down on his bed, head in hands. "I-I'm going to the Oracle Thnk Tank... I need to find my lost memories."

"Lost memories?" Luquier enquired further.

"I can't remember anything before I turned 12... But recently, I keep having dreams of Kuro, and a younger you. I have no idea why..." Dark explained.

"12?!" Luquier exclaimed.

"Is something wrong?" Dark asked, concerned.

"12... Kuro disappeared on his 12th birthday!"

* * *

(Asteroid building, about 2 weeks after the Judgement)

"Owowowowow... It still hurts!" Ren complained as he and Tetsu attempted a physiotherapy exercise on Ren's arm.

"It will at first. It'll go away given time." Tetsu reassured.

"Rrgh..." Ren growled. Most of his wounds had healed, although the one on his face left a vicious-looking scar. The other wound that hadn't healed was of course, his right arm. Having had to let it recover a lot of tissue, any movement of that arm was very painful for the redhead, and he would rather not move it. Though, he knew he had no time to just sit down and rest.

Just as he was about to get up and have a look at his deck, his handphone rang. Ren picked up said phone with his left hand. "Hello- Whoa!" Ren yelled as the phone slipped from his grasp. Thankfully, it landed on his bed and not on the floor, where it could have been easily broken. He picked it up again, more careful this time. "Hello?"

"I heard you shout, Ren. Is something wrong?" Leon's voice came in from the phone's receiver.

"No, it's nothing. Just dropped my phone, that's all. Trying to get my right arm back in shape." Ren explained. He was quite sure Leon had gotten word of his Judgement. After all, Kai was currently training with Leon on the latter's island.

"Ah, right. The Quatre Knights. So I guess you're not going to sit on the fence anymore?"

"Maybe. You?"

"Same here. It will depend on your choice, Ren Suzugamori. Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Leon Souryuu." Ren said as he hung up.

"..."

* * *

(United Sanctuary, Cray)

Blaster Dark picked up his sword. He was wearing the same clothes that he wore to the circus two weeks ago. He seemed to be preparing to go somewhere. Where exactly? The Oracle Think Tank Enterprise. Purpose? Find his lost memories. Travelling with anyone? Luquier, upon her request. When? As soon as possible. Permission from King Alfeed? Taken. Escape 'interrogation' (Read:volley of non-relevant questions) from Blaster Blade? Done as well. Escape silently with no one's knowledge (minus Alfred of course). Soon.

Blaster Dark and Luquier moved silently, slipping past teh dozing night guards of the Shadow Paladins. Dark made a mental note in his head to give those guards intensive night training when he returned. Once past, they started running. Blaster Dark didn't bother wearing his black armor for this particular journey. Why wear something heavy when speed was of the essence?

"Dark..." Luquier called out, as they ran.

"What?" Dark asked, not breaking his hurried pace.

"I just had the idea that you might be Kuro." Luquier said, before quickly shaking her head. "No, impossible, you're a Shadow Paladin."

"One can't be so sure." Blaster Dark stated. Inside, his thoughts were in chaos, something rather unusual for the dark knight. 'That sort of dream wouldn't just pick a random person, would it?'


End file.
